The Early College of Arvada Chromebook Policy Handbook The mission of the 1-to-1 program at The Early College of Arvada is to create a collaborative learning environment for all learners 6-12. We will utilize online learning in conjunction with in person learning to enhance student engagement and establish a foundational learning platform that can be used at school and at home. Device Purpose The Early College of Arvada is supplying all students with a Chromebook device. This device is property of The Early College of Arvada until the student graduates. The supplied Chromebook will provide each student access to required educational materials needed for each student to be successful. The Chromebook allows student access to Google Apps for Education, educational web-based tools, as well as many other useful sites. The supplied device is an educational tool not intended for gaming, social networking or high end computing. The policies, procedures, and information within this document apply to all Chromebooks used at The Early College of Arvada by students, staff, or guests including any other device considered by the Administration to fall under this policy. Teachers may set additional requirements for Chromebook use in their classroom.
Receiving Your Chromebook: Chromebooks will be distributed during Orientation. Parents & Students must sign and return the Chromebook Policy Sign-off and Student Pledge document before the Chromebook can be issued to their child. The Early College of Arvada requires a tech fee of $75 annually for school software, wi-fi, and other labor associated with the use of technology and chromebooks. The fee must be paid by the end of the school year and will be assessed to your Infinite Campus account. Students that stay at ECA will keep their Chromebooks and keep them upon graduating. Any student who transfers out of ECA will be required to return their Chromebook and accessories. If a Chromebook and accessories are not returned, the parent/guardian will be held responsible for 1
payment in full. If payment is not received the parent/guardian will be turned over to a collection agency. Replacement cost is: $350 (lost or damaged beyond repair) ● This includes the cost of all parts, labor, and licensing ● Replacement for individual parts will be determined on a case by case basis which will include labor, and in some cases software costs.
Taking Care of Your Chromebook: Students are responsible for the general care of the Chromebook which they have been issued by the school. Chromebooks that are broken or fail to work properly must be taken to Mr. Heroff or another member of the Admin team. If a loaner Chromebook is needed, one will be issued to the student until their Chromebook can be repaired or replaced. General Precautions: ○ No food or drink is allowed next to your Chromebook while it is in use. ○ Cords, cables, and removable storage devices must be inserted carefully into the Chromebook. ○ Students should never carry their Chromebook while the screen is open unless directed to do so by a teacher. ○ Chromebooks should never be shoved into a bookbag as this may break the screen. ○ Do not expose your Chromebook to extreme temperature or direct sunlight for extended periods of time. Extreme heat or cold may cause damage to the device. ○ Do not place the Chromebook in close proximity to magnets, which can cause damage and/or loss of information. ○ Always bring your Chromebook to room temperature prior to turning it on. Carrying the Chromebook: Your chromebook isn’t designed to be tossed around. Keep it secure and safe in the sleeve provided by the school or safely in a backpack. Be careful, and remember any damage incurred from being careless with it will be your responsibility. Screen Care: The Chromebook screen can be damaged if subjected to rough treatment. The screens are particularly sensitive to damage from excessive pressure on the screen. ○ Do not lean on top of the Chromebook. ○ Do not place anything near the Chromebook that could put pressure on the screen. ○ Do not place anything in the carrying case that will press against the cover. ○ Do not poke the screen. ○ Do not place anything on the keyboard before closing the lid (e.g. pens, pencils, 2
notebooks). ○ Clean the screen with a soft, dry anti-static, or micro-fiber cloth. Do not use window cleaner or any type of liquid or water on the Chromebook. You can also purchase individually packaged pre-moistened eyeglass lens cleaning tissues to clean the screen. These are very convenient and relatively inexpensive.
Using Your Chromebook: At School: The Chromebook is intended for use at school each and every day. In addition to teacher expectations for Chromebook use, school messages, announcements, calendars, academic handbooks, student handbooks and schedules may be made accessible using the Chromebook. Students will be responsible for bringing their Chromebook to all classes, unless specifically advised not to do so by their teacher. All students are required to take their Chromebook home each night throughout the school year for charging. Chromebooks must be brought to school each day in a fully charged condition. If students leave their Chromebook at home, they must immediately phone parents to bring the Chromebook to school. Repeat violations of this policy will result in referral to Administration and possible disciplinary action. Students' grades will be negatively impacted if they are unprepared for classes because their Chromebooks are uncharged or at home. Charged at home, the battery should last throughout the day. Teachers will provide students with specific expectations on Chromebook usage in their classrooms. Students are expected to follow those expectations. This may include when you can open your screen, when you can use earbuds, when or if you can use the chat feature, and the content you are viewing. All usage will be closely monitored, and repeated offenses will result in school disciplinary action.
Student Owned Devices (laptops, Ipads, etc…) In order to ensure the integrity of the network at The Early College of Arvada, as well as to enable teachers to control Chromebook content, student owned devices will not be allowed in classrooms for in-person learning. At Home (Remote Learning): Chromebooks are meant for academic purposes only. Students will be expected to log onto remote learning at the time indicated by their instructors to receive instruction and to be marked for attendance. Students may collaborate with other students using Google Docs, and Google Messengers as appropriate. Teachers will provide work through our online curriculum Edmentum, or through Google Classroom. Students are expected to adhere to deadlines and have their Chromebooks ready to go for live streaming through Zoom, or completion of work assigned. 3
Students that elect for distance learning in the 20’-21’ school year are responsible for ensuring that their Chromebook is taken care of. Follow the same guidelines outlined above to make sure they aren’t abused. When using them at home it’s especially important to keep food and beverages away from the devices, and store them in areas where they will not be damaged. The Chromebooks are owned by ECA until the student graduates which means that we monitor them in the building and from a distance. We have firewalls and software that monitors usage and sends administration red flags when visited websites are questionable. students misusing chat features on Google, participating in any form of cyberbullying, or using technology that in a way that does not follow ECA’s behavior guidelines will be subject to school disciplinary action from the respective deans. Printing: At School: Printing functionality will not be available at school. Teaching strategies will facilitate digital copies of homework. At Home: The Chromebook will not support a physical printer connection. Instead, users may print to their home printers using the Google Cloud Print service. A wireless home network is required for this. http://google.com/cloudprint
Managing Your Files and Saving Your Work: Students may save documents to their Google Drive, or they may save to an external memory device such as a miniSD card or USB flash drive. Saving to Google Drive will make the file accessible from any computer with internet access. Students using Google Drive to work on their documents will not need to save their work, as Drive will save each keystroke as the work is being completed. It will be the responsibility of the student to maintain the integrity of their files and keep proper backups. Students will be trained on proper file management procedures.
Personalizing the Chromebook: Chromebooks must remain free of any writing, drawing, or stickers UNLESS the Chromebook is protected with removable skin. An identification label with the student’s name is acceptable on the Chromebooks. Spot checks for compliance may be done by ECA Administrators, Staff, or Technicians at any time. Students may add appropriate music, photos, and videos to their Chromebook. Personalized media are subject to inspection and must follow The Early College of Arvada’s acceptable use policy.
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Software on Chromebooks: Originally Installed Software: Chromebook software is delivered via the Chrome Web Store. These are web-based applications that do not require installation space on a hard drive. Some applications, such as Google Drive, are available for offline use. The software originally installed on the Chromebook must remain on the Chromebook in usable condition and easily accessible at all times. All Chromebooks are supplied with the latest build of Google Chrome Operating System (OS), and many other applications useful in an educational environment. The Chrome OS will automatically install updates when the computer is shut down and restarted. From time to time the school may add software applications for use in a particular course. This process will be automatic with virtually no impact on students. Applications that are no longer needed will automatically be removed by the school as well. Virus Protection: Virus protection is unnecessary on the Chromebook due to the unique nature of its design. Additional Software: Students are unable to install additional software on their Chromebook other than what has been approved by The Early College of Arvada. Inspection: Students may be selected at random to provide their Chromebook for inspection. The purpose for inspection will be to check for proper care and maintenance as well as inappropriate material being carried into the school. Procedure for Restoring the Chrome OS: If technical difficulties occur, technical support staff will use the “5-minute” rule. If the problem cannot be fixed in 5 minutes, the Chromebook will be restored to factory defaults. In a One-to-One environment it is impossible for support staff to maintain a working environment for all if too much time is spent fixing every glitch that may arise. Restoring the Chrome OS will restore the device to the state in which the user originally received it. All student created files stored on an external miniSD card, USB flash drive, or Google Drive will be intact after the operating system is restored. All files saved on the Chromebook that have been synced to Google Drive will be intact. However, all other data (music, photos, documents) stored on internal memory that has NOT been synced will not be restored unless the student requests that an attempt be made to salvage it.
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Protecting & Storing Your Chromebook: Chromebook Identification: Chromebooks will be labeled in the manner specified by the school. Chromebooks can be identified in the following ways: ● Record of serial number and ECA asset tag ● Individual’s Google Account username Under no circumstances are students to modify, remove, or destroy identification labels. Storing Your Chromebook: When students are not monitoring their Chromebook, they should be stored in their backpacks in the protective sleeve. Nothing should be placed on top of the Chromebook, when stored. Students need to take their Chromebook home with them every night, and should not be stored at the school. Chromebooks should never be stored in a vehicle. Chromebooks Left in Unsupervised / Unsecured Areas: Under no circumstance should a Chromebook be stored in unsupervised areas. Unsupervised areas include the school grounds and campus, the cafeteria, unlocked classrooms,locker rooms, dressing rooms, hallways, bathrooms, buses, in a car, or any other entity that is not securely locked or in which there is no supervision. Unsupervised Chromebooks will be confiscated by staff and taken to the Principal’s office. Disciplinary action will be taken for leaving a Chromebook in an unsupervised location.
Repairing or Replacing Your Chromebook: Chromebooks Undergoing Repair: ● Loaner Chromebooks may be issued to students when they leave their Chromebook for repair in the Admin Office. ● If repair is needed due to malicious damage, the school may refuse to provide a loaner Chromebook. ● Repaired Chromebooks will end up with the original factory image as first received. It is important that students keep their school data synced to cloud drives so documents and class projects will not be lost. Personal information that cannot be replaced should be kept at home on an external storage device. ● Students and parents will be charged for Chromebook damage that is a result of misuse or abusive handling. Parents will be responsible for parts and labor expenses. If a Chromebook becomes defective (at no fault of the student) after the warranty expires, ECA will replace the Chromebook at no charge with a refurbished Chromebook of the same age or newer. 6
Failure of the parent, legal guardian or student over the age of 18 to pay any fees from an intentionally damaged, lost or stolen Chromebook will be turned over to a collection agency and may delay the issuance of student transcripts and/or diploma. Acceptable Use & Digital Citizenship Policy Digital Citizenship 1. Current filtering methods The Early College of Arvada complies with all federal regulations regarding filtering as specified under the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA). This law specifies that each school: ●
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“certify that they have an Internet safety policy and technology protection measures in place. An Internet safety policy must include technology protection measures to block or filter Internet access to pictures that: (a) are obscene, (b) are child pornography, or (c) are harmful to minors, for computers that are accessed by minors” “adopt and enforce a policy to monitor online activities of minors” “adopt and implement a policy addressing: (a) access by minors to inappropriate matter on the Internet; (b) the safety and security of minors when using electronic mail, chat rooms, and other forms of direct electronic communications; (c) unauthorized access, including so-called “hacking,” and other unlawful activities by minors online; (d) unauthorized disclosure, use, and dissemination of personal information regarding minors; and (e) restricting minors’ access to materials harmful to them.”
The Early College of Arvada employs the following methods to enforce each of these requirements: ●
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The School uses an in-house firewall to block sexual content, gambling, games, as well as many sites specifically identified by teachers and staff. Our email system is filtered by Gmail’s enhanced pre-delivery message scanning services to help filter out inappropriate content & junk email. The Information Technology Coordinator reviews the student and staff Internet access logs on a regular basis to find attempts to circumvent blocked content. These logs are also backed up for the purpose of holding an archived record for investigations for discipline reasons or illegal activity. The School has a Network/Internet Agreement form addressing inappropriate acts which must be signed by all students and parents. When students violate these guidelines, they are addressed by the School’s Principal, in cooperation with information provided by the Information Systems staff. These offenses follow the same disciplinary policy as other discipline at The Early College of Arvada. For more information about the School’s Network/Internet Agreement form, please see section 2 below, labeled Acceptable Use Policy (AUP).
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2. Acceptable Use Policy (AUP): Technology Code of Conduct It is the intent of The Early College of Arvada to advance and promote education by assisting in the collaboration and exchange of information. Successful operation of the Internet and other related technological service requires that all users regard the system as a shared resource. Users must cooperate to form a community of diverse interests with a common purpose of advancing education. It is, therefore, imperative that all users conduct themselves in a responsible, ethical, and polite manner. General Network Use The network is provided for students to conduct research, complete assignments, publish their work, and communicate with others. Access to network services is given to students who agree to act in a considerate and responsible manner. Students are responsible for good behavior on school computer networks just as they are in a classroom or a school hallway. Access is a privilege - not a right. As such, general school rules for behavior and communications apply, and users must comply with School standards and honor the agreements they have signed. Beyond the clarification of such standards, the School is not responsible for restricting, monitoring or controlling the communications of individuals utilizing the network. Network storage areas are similar to school lockers. Network administrators may review files and communications to maintain system integrity and ensure that the system is used responsibly. Users should not expect that files stored on School servers will always be private. Internet / World Wide Web / E-mail Access Access to the Internet, and email for educational purposes when appropriate, will enable students to use thousands of libraries and databases and correspondence with experts in their field. Within reason, freedom of speech and access to information will be honored. Families should be warned that some material accessible via the Internet might contain items that are illegal, defamatory, inaccurate or potentially offensive to some people. While our intent is to make Internet access available to further educational goals and objectives, students may find ways to access other materials as well. Filtering software is in use, but no filtering system is capable of blocking 100% of the inappropriate material available on the Internet. The Early College of Arvada believes that the benefits to students from access to the Internet, in the form of information resources and opportunities for collaboration, exceed the disadvantages. Ultimately, parents and guardians of minors are responsible for setting and conveying the standards that their children should follow when using media and information sources. Publishing to the World Wide Web Student work may be considered for publication on the World Wide Web, specifically on the school’s Website or a classroom Website. In the event anyone requests permission for copyright use, those requests will be forwarded to the student’s parent/guardian. In general, documents may not include a student's full name, phone number, address or other identifying contact information.
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Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act - FERPA Most student records are open only to teachers, principals, and other staff members who have responsibilities requiring such access. Parents may review student records of their son/daughter; also, students eighteen years and older have access to their own records. Arrangement for such reviews should be made through the school principal. Copies of any materials in those records will be furnished at the request of parents and/or eligible students at a cost of ten cents per page. The federal law, Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, states that: 1. Parents (or non-dependent students eighteen and older) must give written consent before release of “supplemental” or “confidential” information about their student (or themselves). 2. “Standard” or “regular” school records may be forwarded by the school upon request and without parent/student consent. 3. “Directory information” about a student may be released to the public without parent/non-dependent student consent unless that parent gives the school written notice to the contrary using FERPA Student Opt-out Form, available from school secretary. Record of completion of this form will be indicated in the Student Information Service. “Directory information” includes any one or all of the following: student’s name, participation in officially recognized activities and sports, address, telephone listing, weight and height of members of athletic teams, photograph or other digital image, degrees, honors and awards received, date and place of birth, major field of study, dates of attendance, grade level, and most recent educational agency or institution attended. The Early College of Arvada does not provide directory information to private parties for commercial use; however, the school may release directory information, upon request, to State and Federal Government agencies. The primary purpose of directory information is to allow The Early College of Arvada to include this type of information from your child’s education records in certain school publications. Examples include: the annual yearbook, honor roll or other recognition lists, school, classroom and/or student websites, graduation programs, a playbill showing your student’s role in a drama production or concert, and sports activity sheets. The school also provides directory information to news media on students to be honored for outstanding achievement. Online Safety Awareness It is our School’s goal to empower our students to make their computer/Internet experiences safe and responsible. To help facilitate this, the School’s handbook includes the Acceptable Use Policy which all students and parents/guardians are required to read, sign, and return to the school principal. To achieve “Online safety” requires training/professional development and community support. The training goal for our faculty, students, and parents is to learn how to be safe and responsible in their use of the Internet. We want to teach critical thinking about online activities. Understanding how to make decisions while online will keep faculty and students safe from predators, but also improve their media literacy. Online Safety is integrated across the curriculum. The faculty receives resources and training in order to educate themselves, their students, and parents of their students on how to avoid dangerous, inappropriate, or unlawful online behavior.
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Network/Internet Agreement: Misuse of network access constitutes gross disobedience or misconduct and is unacceptable. Examples of this misuse are: ● ● ● ● ● ●
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Disrupting the proper and orderly operation and discipline of the school. Threatening the integrity or efficient operation of the school's network. Socially inappropriate or inappropriate content for a student’s age or maturity level. Acts primarily intended as an immediate solicitation of funds. Using obscenities or inflammatory dialogue. Taking any steps that threaten, or which may be reasonably interpreted to threaten, any person, group of persons, building or property with harm, regardless of whether the user intends to carry out such a threat. Harassing other users. Using another user’s account(s). Misrepresenting oneself as another user. Violating the rights of others or their privacy and safety. Accessing, viewing, downloading, displaying, transmitting, creating, or otherwise possessing or disseminating material that contains pornography, obscenity, or sexually explicit, pervasively lewd and vulgar, indecent or inappropriate language, text, sounds or visual depictions. Accessing district blocked Websites, via codes or other improper routes. Using technology resources for personal business or commercial, private or personal financial gain, including gambling. Vandalizing data, programs, networks or information resources. Degrading or disrupting systems or equipment. Damaging technology hardware or software - Students will be held financially responsible for intentional damage. Spreading or attempting to spread computer viruses. Gaining unauthorized access to resources or entities. Violating copyright laws or other intellectual property rights. Using technology resources for illegal activities. Accessing, using or possessing any material in a manner that constitutes or furthers fraud (including academic fraud), libel, slander, plagiarism or forgery. Attempting to commit any action that would constitute an unacceptable use if accomplished successfully.
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Print Student Name
ECA Technology Use Agreement Beginning of the year - Chromebook Check-out The following information must be filled out completely prior to obtaining your Chromebook. One form per student must be filled out. Parents/Guardians: (initial all below) Students will receive _______ Chromebook s/n ____________________________ _______ Charger _______ Chromebook Case ●
___I have read and discussed the Chromebook Policy Handbook, the Responsible Use of the Internet document, and the Network/Internet Agreement with my child. I understand that my child's failure to follow the information and expectations outlined in these documents may result in disciplinary action.
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___I Understand Technology Fee Policy: The premium is $75/year ($40 for reduced status or $25 for free status as recognized by ECA Free and Reduced reporting.) If damaged,fees will be applied and posted in your Infinite Campus account. Lost or stolen Chromebooks or Accessories are the responsibility of the student/family and must be replaced at full value.
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___I understand the technology fee of $75 must be paid by the end of the school year
Parent Signature__________________________________________Date_______________ Student: (initial below) ●
___I have read and understand the Chromebook Policy Handbook & Acceptable Use Policy. I understand that my failure to follow the information and expectations outlined in these documents may result in disciplinary action.
Student Signature______________________________________Date_____________
Student Name___________________________________Grade_________ 11